The Trip of Firsts

I've never been overseas before, never been outside the country. 

I know, I know. That's hard to believe when you hear that I'm an aspiring travel journalist. But it's true. Being my first trip there was a little bit of anxiety involved on top of my already present travel anxiety. You might be asking yourself why someone with anxiety wants to be a travel journalist. The answer is simple–I want to see the world, to share people’s stories, plus I like the challenge…sometimes. 

This trip in particular was a trip of firsts. First time flying by myself with a checked bag (which was less confusing than I thought), first time on a longer than 6-hour flight, first time leaving the country, first time being in Europe, first time being this far away from my family. I will admit, I felt a lot of anxiety in the days leading up to my flight. I wasn’t sure how to make sure I found the correct baggage carousel, how to get a taxi cab (the only reference I had was seeing failed attempts made by other people in NYC), and I wasn’t sure how to go through customs, get my passport stamped, and find the hotel. 

After a flight where I didn’t sleep much (even after taking a dose of melatonin that was probably too much to be good for a person), I landed in London. As I stepped off the plane, a slight panic arose when I couldn’t figure out how to get my phone to work to call my dad. But once we were connected, as I walked through the Heathrow airport, following signs for Arrivals, I began to feel more comfortable. Getting around this airport was no different than the hundreds of airports I’ve navigated in the US. 

The second I had service I called my dad. “Dad, I did it!” I said with a smile on my face. “I knew you could,” he replied. I could hear a smile coming from the other end of the phone. 

I split a cab with three other students from the trip, two of which I accidentally stumbled upon after baggage claim. We got dropped off right outside the front door of the Ridgemount Hotel, a trip that was much easier than I had thought. 

All in all, it still hasn’t sunk in yet that I’m in another country, that I’m so far from home, and all I know. I think one of the reasons is that London, so far, feels like an alternate New York City, and I’m surrounded by people who sound like me, that are familiar. 

So what did I learn from this experience, traveling across the ocean by myself for the first time?

I learned that it was a lot easier than I expected, that I greatly overthought every single step, and that at the end of the day, it was something I could do. I’ve learned that when you get past anxiety, as cliche as it sounds, you can get through anything if you really want to.